Perkiomen Valley School District Petition- Open PA Schools

Get our children back in the classrooms!  

Fill out the form below to petition Perkiomen Valley School District to open  up the school for 5-day, in-person, brick and mortar instruction now.

All data currently available supports our childrens’ need to be returning to full-time in-person academics this fall.  The data also shows this can be achieved safely. This is the only option which meets all the diverse and significant needs of our students and families within our school district.

We are asking the Perkiomen Valley School Board to open up our schools for full-time brick and mortar education this fall.

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) says:

• “The best available evidence indicates that COVID-19 poses relatively low risks to school-aged children.”
• “Scientific studies suggest that COVID-19 transmission among children in schools may be low.”
• “Extended school closure is harmful to children.  It can lead to severe learning loss, and the need for in-person instruction is particularly important for students with heightened behavioral needs.” and “We also know that, for many students, long breaks from in-person education are harmful to student learning.” (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/reopening-schools.html 

 

The conclusion from the CDC is “The best available evidence from countries that have opened schools indicates that COVID-19 poses low risks to school-aged children, at least in areas with low community transmission, and suggests that children are unlikely to be major drivers of the spread of the virus.  Reopening schools creates opportunity to invest in the education, well-being, and future of one of America’s greatest assets—our children—while taking every precaution to protect students, teachers, staff and all their families”

Distance learning in the spring left much to be desired.  Our children stayed stagnant in their academics and social-emotional development, at best.  No distance learning or hybrid plan can come close to the direct interaction, observation and instruction that an in-person, one-on-one, in-classroom environment brings.

We all know that living life comes with risks…waking up every morning, driving in a car, flying on a plane.  Yet we take on these risks and proceed with our lives because of the many other benefits that these activities provide.  So what then is the risk of COVID-19? The CDC says “To put this in perspective, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as of July 17, 2020, the United States reported that children and adolescents under 18 years old account for under 7 percent of COVID-19 cases and less than 0.1 percent of COVID-19-related deaths.  Although relatively rare, flu-related deaths in children occur every year. From 2004-2005 to 2018-2019, flu-related deaths in children reported to CDC during regular flu seasons ranged from 37 to 187 deaths.  During the H1N1 pandemic (April 15, 2009 to October 2, 2010), 358 pediatric deaths were reported to CDC. So far in this pandemic, deaths of children are less than in each of the last five flu seasons, with only 64.“

According to the Pennsylvania COVID-19 Dashboard (As of July 25, 2020) there have been no deaths in the age 0-9 and age 10-19 categories.

The bottom line is this: The Perkiomen Valley School District should bring all the students, who wish to return, back into their classrooms this fall.  As the CDC stated, “Reopening schools creates opportunity to invest in the education, well-being, and future of one of America’s greatest assets—our children—while taking every precaution to protect students, teachers, staff and all their families.”

Do you want your school district’s petition added to our site? Contact Us